CUMHURIYET- Columnist Cuneyt Arcayurek comments on Mesut Yilmaz's latest words on the EU and the Cyprus issue. A summary of his column is as follows:
We are witnessing problems of disharmony within the government, signs of deep disagreement among the leaders centered around the EU and Cyprus issues. Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz last week issued a declaration which stopped just short of threatening the government. According to Yilmaz, if we don't want to miss the EU train, we should completely fulfill almost all the Copenhagen criteria within two months. Yilmaz has made it a habit to single-handedly publicly declare EU timetables as he sees them. Fifteen days, a month, and now two months. And you can be sure this will continue. Yilmaz will be telling fortunes for the next 10 months. If the criteria aren't met, social tensions will increase. By saying, 'Turkey won't be able to protect its national integrity in 10 years' Yilmaz means that our national integrity is in danger and thus we should give the EU whatever it wants! However, officials who read the declaration are talking about more dangerous developments in the offing. Some suppose that the suspicion and worry in Turkey that the EU will divide the country is changing. If Turkey's EU membership bid fails, some will think that the government has accepted the idea that it won't be able to protect the nation's integrity in 10 years, and they will repeat Yilmaz's declaration in every opportunity. However, neither our government's prime minister, nor his other partners and officials from the Foreign Ministry voiced objections to Yilmaz's words, which are likely to echo in foreign lobbies and in the media, nor did they criticize the liklihood of such a scenario. According to Yilmaz, if Turkey doesn't take "the necessary steps" before the end of June, we won't be able to protect our integrity, foreign capital will steer clear of Turkey in the upcoming years, unemployment will continue and the Balkan countries will progress beyond us. Yilmaz in his declarations, and EU Deputy Secretary-General Volkan Vural an article in the journal published by the Foreign Ministry, spoke of Turkey's economic and social boon if it becomes a EU member. But why don't they talk about the "concessions that we will make from our national sovereignty" in return for EU membership? First of all, Yilmaz has set his mind on dominating the government as well as public opinion. He feels confidence in doing so because the prime minister shrinks from reminding his deputy that he shouldn't make speeches criticizing government and state policy, perhaps out of fear that the government may fall apart. Yilmaz's latest gift to national policy is his declaration that if Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas wants to help Turkey, he should be 'more compromising.' Be fair! However, in the 22-page package which was given by Denktas to Greek Cypriot Administration leader Glafcos Clerides on April 29, there is a proposal inspired by an article of the Swedish Constitution, parallel to the Turkish policy consisting of two separate governments in Cyprus. As Denktas said, Yilmaz either didn't read the TRNC's conciliatory proposals, or he is pretending not to have read them in order to please foreign circles.
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION